Charioce XVII
Charioce XVII (シャリオス17世, Shariozu 17-sei) is the current king of Anatae. He is a calculating king who is willing to resort to any measure as long as it fits his goal. Fearing neither god nor demon, he wields forbidden power stolen from the gods themselves. He is the son of King Charioce XIII born from one of the king's concubines. His birth name is Chris. Appearance Charioce XVII/Chris is noted as handsome with a tall lean muscular body. He always keeps a haughty, poker face expression on his face. He has a mullet styled platinum blonde hair, with dark gray eyebrows, and his most notable features are his golden eyes with bold lower lashes. In episode 10, Charioce appears in a flashback of his coronation looking in his mid teens and crowned as the new king of Anatae. His platinum blonde hair was longer and curlier. His body was leaner and less muscular. He was wearing his official royal uniform. His crown is similar to a hat, adorned with a golden band, jewels, and golden embroidery around it. He rarely wears it, only when he is in an official event. Personality Charioce XVII is viewed as a powerful and influential king that changed the balance of power in favor of mankind within seven years. He is feared among his subjects as he is determined to eliminate those who dare to stand in his way. He is very straightforward in his words and actions. As king, he barely shows any emotions and does not speak unless necessary. Though he is more ruthless in his tactics against his enemies, he has been more mindful of the citizens living in Anatae. For instance, he did evacuate the citizens of Anatae to evacuation sites for the citizens' safety on multiple occassions: when they were going to confront the Rag Demon; when the demons bombed a bridge killing innocent humans; when Charioce XVII and the humans went to war against Gabriel, Mugaro, and the angels; and finally, when the Jeanne D'Arc and the gods and demons officially declared war against Charioce XVII and the humans. In contrast to his King Charioce persona, Charioce has another gentler side that is only shown to his love interest Nina Drango. His "Chris" side is described to be humble, kind, and caring. He is also more care-free as Chris. He appears to use this disguise as a chance to have a break from his self-imposed mission. Even as Chris, however, Charioce showed no concern for the demon children whose lives he had ruined and even kicked a skull into one of the children's heads. Charioce also enjoys violence and drops his stoic expression to reveal a gleeful smile while confronting the "Ragged Demon". He doesn't believe in the idea of coexistence not because the coexistence during Bahamut's revival killed more humans, but because even after Bahamut was sealed every time, the demons' attacked and killed humans in the capital and human villages and the gods like Gabriel were too arrogant to consider humans "their equals". He brushes off any thought of the gods, demons and humans working together in his talk with Kaisar. However, he admits to Nina that ever since he met Nina, he become torn between what he swore to do with his life as king and what he wants as a man. She was the first person who made him realize that he wants more from his life than being a evil king who wears a mask and inflicts cruelty back at the gods and demons without remorse to advance humanity. The loss of his mother is considered a truly tragic tale, in contrast to the thousands of lives he had taken and risked when he decided it was his duty to summon Bahamut and fight the dragon himself near the capital city. Plot Past Being the bastard son of King Charioce XIII, Charioce was not allowed to step in the castle since his mother was banished as soon as she was pregnant. He had no claim to the throne and lived in poverty with his mother until she was killed by Bahamut's fireballs during the events of Genesis. It is unknown what Charioce did during those three years before he took the throne, however Anatae saw the disposal of three Charioces (Charioce XIV, Charioce XV, Charioce XVI) before he finally took the throne. At some point, he learned about Dromos and Bahamut's impending return from Martinet's notes. The royal steward likely informed him and this knowledge propelled Charioce into his self-proclaimed destiny of fighting the dragon himself. When he demanded the gods give him Dromos they refused, leading Charioce to raid their temples for the stone slabs needed to rebuild Dromos. Charioce's actions against the gods was met with disapproval by Jeanne d'Arc, which Charioce anticipated. When he could not talk her into taking his side, he banished her from the Orleans Knights. Two years after he took the throne, he conquered Cocytus, the capital of the demons, and enslaved them to use them as labor force to rebuild Anatae that was still suffering from Bahamut's incident and to keep the demons at bay to reassure mankind that they will no longer fear them. Enslavement of demons led to other horrible things to occur such as experimenting, torture, and mutilating weak demons by nobles and slave owners. Three years later, Charioce discovers Jeanne had a son with a non-human. This child, dubbed "the Holy Child", can disable the green stones used by the Onyx Knights. Since the child poses a threat to his reign, Charioce orders for his capture and execution but the knights succeed in only capturing Jeanne, who is promptly sent to the labor camp. Shingeki no Bahamut Virgin Soul Charioce XVII finds himself faced with a difficult enemy known as the "Ragged Demon". He assigns the task of dealing with this threat to the Orleans Knights. When the Orleans Knights report their failure due to the interference of a red dragon, Charioce re-assigns the task to the Onyx Knights. Later on, the Captain of the Onyx Knights reports that the Ragged Demon was rescued by his mute companion, who could disable the green stones just like the child they were hunting two years ago. Both speculate that the Ragged Demon's companion is that child. Charioce suggests they continue to hunt solely for the Ragged Demon knowing it would lead them to the child eventually. Charioce disguises himself as a common man and leaves the royal castle. He pays a visit to his mother's grave. In the capital city, Charioce notices a girl winning arm-wrestling matches. Hamsa encourages him to try and defeat Nina. Charioce offers a ring as payment for the entry. During the match, Charioce does surprisingly well against Nina until Nina uses full-force and sends Charioce tumbling onto the ground.Virgin Soul Episode 3 That night, Charioce XVII leads hie men into an open area within the city, where Charioce has a bunch of demons held as hostages. He urges the "Ragged Demon" to come out or else he will kill these demons. The Ragged Demon does appear and launches an attack, but the Ragged Demon is at a disadvantage due to the Onyx Knights's power. The fight leads the rags covering the demon's face to come off, revealing he is in fact Azazel, a demon working in the funeral home. Azazel gets captured and a golem prepares to crush him to death. Suddenly, Azazel is pulled violently through the air and out of danger. Charioce threatens to kill the hostages again if he doesn't return, but the "Red Dragon" is the one to respond. Charioce XVII watches in amazement as the power of the Onyx Knights fails to contain the Red Dragon, who defeats his army. Back at the royal castle, Charioce asks Kaisar about his relation to the "Ragged Demon". Kaisar confesses that Azazel was responsible for his father's death. Charioce questions why, despite knowing the "Ragged Demon"'s true identity, Kaisar did not kill him immediately. Kaisar says the Red Dragon was with him so he couldn't act but vows to do his best next time. Charioce decides to give Kaisar the benefit of the doubt due to his performance earlier. Charioce visits Jeanne d'Arc outside her cell and reveals to her that he and his knights now know where her son is. He calls her "brute of a mother" for having sold her son to slavery in order to hide him. He proclaims his intention to capture and execute the boy, but promises to let Jeanne see him one more time before he does.Virgin Soul Episode 4 While Charioce is eating, the Onyx Knights Captain informs him that suspicious individuals - likely to be gods - are lurking in the city. Charioce decides to let them be for now and focus on the Ragged Demon. At night, Charioce visits the statue of Bahamut. He and Kaisar discuss Bahamut's defeat ten years ago and Kaisar emphasizes that it took the combined effort of humans, demons and gods to defeat the dragon. Charioce doesn't care since many lives were still lost that day and it is time for humans to change and rise above the gods and demons. Charioce proclaims it is his duty as king to make this happen.Virgin Soul Episode 5 When Charioce decides to leave the castle again in his disguise, his advisor is against it since Charioce never says where he's going. Charioce ignores him and heads for the capital city, where he discovers Nina being ganged up on by demon slavers. Charioce easily defeats all six of them. When the leader notices Charioce's bracelet, he realizes who Charioce is and tells his men to retreat. Charioce then picks up Nina's groceries and returns them to a flustered Nina. In thanks, Nina takes him to the food stand where her friends are. Back at the castle, Charioce is shown admiring a chili pepper he stole from Nina's groceries. Later that evening, Charioce takes Nina on a walk around the town, which is in the middle of preparing for the upcoming festival. When they spot people dancing, the two decide to dance with each other. Afterwards, Charioce admits that his name is "Chris". Charioce returns to the castle by morning in preparation for the upcoming parade. He is proud of this day because it marks five years since he conquered the demon race and destroyed their home. During the parade, Charioce spots a group of demons in hiding and sends his Onyx Knights to deal with them. As expected, there are many demons in the area who had planned to assassinate the king, but the Onyx Knights easily kill them one by one. When the demons are down to two, Azazel arrives and tries to protect them. Both demons are swiftly killed despite Azazel's efforts. Before the Onyx Knights can attack Azazel, the Holy Child appears and uses his power to disable the Onyx Knights. Charioce is forced to fight Azazel one on one. Kaisar tries to intervene and stop the pair from fighting and his interference deeply annoys Charioce. The gods who had been hiding in the city appear and capture the Holy Child and take him up to their land, allowing the Onyx Knights to apprehend Azazel. When Nina shows up, Azazel blurts out that she is the Red Dragon. In response, the Onyx Knights capture her too, and for his interference, Kaisar is also arrested. Nina and Kaisar are presented before Charioce at the royal castle where they are informed of their sentencing. Nina is enraged and defiant towards the king, but she and Kaisar are soon taken away to the labor camp. Charioce visits Azazel in his cell and asks if he ever knew the child with him was actually a god. When Azazel silently confirms that he did not, Charioce calls him pathetic. He reveals his intention to capture the boy before the gods did, but now that the gods have him, Charioce believes the gods are now overconfident, so he will simply kill them all along with the boy. He notes that once he has done this, "that woman" will surely stop praying.Virgin Soul Episode 8 The demon Buer defeats his opponent in the arena and receives cheers from all the spectators. Charioce XVII's servant announces Buer's promotion to the Head of the Demon Division in recognition of Buer's strength. Shortly after, two gods make an unannounced visit and request the return of the objects Charioce had stolen from them, along with Jeanne d'Arc. Charioce recommends the leader, Gabriel, to use force if she wants something from him. This instigates a war between the two races. But before he went to war with the gods, he went to Jeanne's cell in the hopes of by having her talk to her son, she would be able to end the war with the gods. In exchange, neither the gods nor Mugaro will die and needless blood will not be spilled. When Jeanne asks how Charioce XVII can guarantee his promise to her, he states that her choice will save a number of lives. But Jeanne refuses, stating that she "cannot betray the gods nor the people who believe in me". During the war, Charioce sends many green-stone powered ships at Gabriel's vessel. The Holy Child El uses his power to knock them all out of the sky. Charioce then decides he will use his secret weapon and a giant device is summoned from underneath the labor camp, killing everyone inside. This weapon is Dromos. Charioce XVII fires Dromos at Gabriel's vessel, destroying it. El is rendered unable to use his power, allowing the Onyx Knights to slay the hundreds of gods fighting outside the vessel. Meanwhile, Nina Drango collides into Charioce. He embraces her which turns her into a dragon. Nina goes on a rampage and defeats the Onyx Knights but returns to normal when Charioce touches her, transforming from a dragon to human. Nina is rescued by her friends, who had all escaped the labor camp. Kaisar is the only one left behind. Following Kaisar's arrest, Charioce arranges for Kaisar to fight in the arena against Azazel. He watches the pair clash swords but doesn't react when someone throws a smoke bomb into the arena and rescues the pair. Charioce wears his disguise again to pay his mother's grave another visit. Nina, who is disguised as a demon, stalks him for a while. The two then visit the demon slums and spend some time together, although Charioce tries to stay away from the Onyx Knights who are spying on them. The pair eventually arrive at a cave. It is here that Charioce insists every bad thing he has done was for a higher purpose and he has chosen to abandon any feelings of guilt or shame. He visits his mother's grave for the sole purpose of ensuring his convictions never waver. The king is irritated that ever since he met Nina, his convinctions have begun to waver. He confesses his love to her, instilling sympathy from Nina and the two share an embrace and a kiss. This moment grants Nina the ability to transform at will and she demonstrates this to Charioce. The king rides on her back as she flies him across the city in her dragon form.Virgin Soul Episode 17 Charioce hosts a fund-raising ball inside the royal castle. When Nina arrives, Charioce goes to dance with her. Afterwards, the pair speak privately on a balcony. Charioce informs Nina that they can never meet again and that despite his promise, he won't tell her what he's planning "for her sake". He orders Nina to leave or else he will call the guards on her (as a way that she will escape from being killed by the guards as per his reluctant order). Suddenly, Favaro appears and aims his crossbow at Charioce, demanding the bracelet Charioce used to control Dromos. It is then that Charioce reveals removing the bracelet will kill him. Hearing this, Nina comes to Charioce's defense. Favaro hesitates until guards surround him, forcing him to take Nina and flee. By morning, The Captain lies to Charioce that Nina has been killed as per Charioce's order. Charioce XVII and the Onyx Knights sneak out of the royal castle at night. When Nina and Favaro go after him in another attempt to steal his bracelet, Chabrol reveals Charioce's secret reason for using Dromos: Martinet's notes spoke of Bahamut's return in ten years time and they have been preparing ever since to fight and confront the dragon. This revelation helps Nina and Favaro to understand what Charioce XVII was up to. When Jeanne d'Arc and Azazel confront Charioce's army, the pair are able to fight their way through with relative ease. The Onyx Knights try to defend the king but the green stones have almost completely drained the knights of their life force. When the Captain himself dies, Jeanne and Azazel are able to confront Charioce head on. However, Kaisar makes a sudden appearance and shields Charioce from a lethal attack. Kaisar dies shortly before Bahamut appears. Charioce leaves his two enemies behind to confront the dragon as intended. Charioce activates Dromos. Nina suddenly appears and puts her hand inside the device as she wishes to sacrifice her life alongside him. The pair jointly fire Dromos at Bahamut. The dragon is seemingly obliterated by the devastating blast while Charioce and Nina are knocked unconscious. Charioce's bracelet is shown disintegrating into nothingness. Since the gods, demons and humans are all convinced Charioce had successfully killed Bahamut, he is revered as a hero and his enemies cease their attacks. Although Charioce has been rendered completely blind, he is still king of Anatae. Nina, on the other hand, lost her voice for helping him. According to Nina, Charioce no longer enslaves the captured demons but treats them as paid workers. These demons now assist the humans in rebuilding the city, which was partially destroyed by Bahamut. By nightfall, Nina pays Charioce a visit. The two dance for the third time under the starry sky. Powers and Abilities * Swordsmanship: He is an excellent swordsman proven during his fight with Kaisar and Azazel. He is also able to hold off Jeanne d'Arc and Azazel for a while with an injured hand. * Archery skills: He is skilled in archery as shown during the festival date, he shot all of his arrows right into the bulls-eye. * Physical strength: He is very strong for a human since he was the only one who was able to keep up with Nina in an arm-wrestling match. He could also beat up six men with ease. Weaknesses *'Blindness:' Charioce XVII was rendered blind in both eyes as a toll for using Dromos twice. *'Mortality:' Charioce XVII lost to Nina in an arm-wrestling match and was sent tumbling onto the ground. While he withstood a combined blast from Azazel and Jeanne, Kaisar felt he needed to sacrifice himself to prevent a second attack from Azazel and Jeanne from killing Charioce. *'Removal of Dromos's bracelet: (formerly)' Charioce could not remove this bracelet since doing so would kill him. He was freed from this weakness when the bracelet itself disintegrated. Equipment * Charioce XVII's bracelet: (formerly) Charioce wore this bracelet in order to operate Dromos. He knew that by wearing it he could never remove it. The bracelet disintegrated after his second use of Dromos. * Dromos: (formerly) Charioce successfully stole, rebuilt and commanded Dromos, a feat thought not possible for the humans. The loss of the bracelet made the weapon unusable to all. * Sword: Charioce wielded his own sword which he was exceptionally good at using. Relationships * El: Charioce XVII regarded El as a threat to his Onyx Task Force. He put out hits on El that led to those like Alessand Visponti to seek El out. He initially wanted the boy captured and executed, but before the war, he went to war with the gods, he went to Jeanne's cell in the hopes of by having her talk to her son, she would be able to end the war with the gods. In exchange, neither the gods nor Mugaro will die and needless blood will not be spilled. When Jeanne asks how Charioce XVII can guarantee his promise to her, he states that her choice will save a number of lives. But Jeanne refuses, stating that she "cannot betray the gods nor the people who believe in me". As a result, Charioce XVII went to war. Since El was a half-god, Charioce had no qualms about murdering El along with the other gods. * Favaro Leone: Charioce XVII had Favaro arrested, put through trials in the arena and imprisoned him in the labor camp for reasons never stated. He does not care about Favaro and treats him with disinterest. Because of Nina's feelings for Charioce, Favaro tries to help Nina how to approach her relationship with Charioce XVII. He also tries to understand what the king is up to with Bahamut. Unknown to Charioce, Favaro does the king a favor by not telling anyone that Charioce did not truly kill Bahamut. * Gabriel: Charioce XVII saw Gabriel as a little more than a nuisance who did not deserve worship from the humans. He understood that Gabriel wishes to use humans for their own selfish reasons, especially when Gabriel blantantly used a half-human/half-angel like El to go to war against Charioce XVII. He only ever made demands and slayed gods whenever Gabriel failed to listen his wishes. He did not fear Gabriel like most others did and even encouraged her to use force against him instead of negotiating. Charioce XVII desired to see Gabriel dead with the rest of her kind. * Jeanne d'Arc: From the moment he took the throne, Charioce knew Jeanne was a potential enemy due to her loyalty to the gods. Charioce XVII gives Jeanne a chance to swear his loyalty to him or leave the castle. When he failed to convince her to abandon the gods, he banished her from the royal castle. After learning about her child's abilities, Charioce imprisons Jeanne and holds her captive, again demanding she abandon the gods in an attempt to gain the support of the god worshipers, to no avail. Before he went to war with the gods, he went to Jeanne's cell in the hopes of by having her talk to her son, she would be able to end the war with the gods. In exchange, neither the gods nor Mugaro will die and needless blood will not be spilled. When Jeanne asks how Charioce XVII can guarantee his promise to her, he states that her choice will save a number of lives. But Jeanne refuses, stating that she "cannot betray the gods nor the people who believe in me". Charioce does, however, get Jeanne's son killed after two years of hunting the boy. This leads Jeanne to make an attempt on Charioce's life and she fails thanks to Kaisar. * Kaisar Lidfard: Kaisar served Charioce XVII as captain of the Orleans Knights. Charioce briefly suspected Kaisar of disloyalty and Kaisar did briefly want the three races to work together against Charioce's wishes. Charioce responded by saying that Kaisar is free to live his life his way as long as he doesn't interfere with his plan. After Kaisar interfered in Charioce XVII's fight against Azazel during the parade massacre, he responded by imprisoning Kaisar in the labor camp and forcing him to fight in the arena. In the end however, Kaisar proved to be extremely loyal when he gave up his life to protect the king from Jeanne and Azazel. * Nina Drango: His love interest. Throughout the series Charioce grows fond of Nina and falls in love with her and continues to do so even after knowing she is the Red Dragon whom he considered once an enemy due to being connected to the Rag Demon. She is the first girl he ever danced and spends time with. Even though he loves Nina, it does not stop him from pursuing his goal thus distancing himself from her and breaking her heart. His convictions never wavered until Nina came into his life and he agreed to have her killed by an assassin when this fact was pointed out. Despite all this, Nina understood that he still loves her, which is what allows their relationship to flourish. * Onyx Task Force Captain: Charioce's closest and most loyal subject. He is the leader of the Onyx Task Force, Charioce's most powerful and loyal faction. Charioce acknowledged the Captain's duty to serve until his last breath and never questioned the Captain's loyalty. The Captain was one of the few people allowed to stand close to him. Quotes Trivia * Virgin Soul refers to Charioce XVII/Chris and Nina Drango. * The name Charioce is a combination of the word "Char" meaning to become black or to burn, and "Rioce" meaning royalty. * Chris is his birth name, while Charioce was the name given to him when he became king. * The name Chris or Christopher comes from the Greek meaning "Carrier of Christ". It originates from the name of the Christian patron saint of travelers "Saint Christopher". * Charioce XVII/Chris has the most wardrobe changes in the show. * Director of Shingeki no Bahamut: Virgin Soul, Keiichi Sato, confirmed during an SnB event that Charioce's feelings for Nina Drango are genuine and it was "love at first sight". * During an interview, Screen play writer Oishiki Shizen describes Charioce's character as "Perfect and ideal man. Who is beautiful and charismatic that has power and can withstand loneliness. He always looks to his goals. Such a man doesn't exist in reality, it's only seen in animation". * In the flashback in episode 10, the manner Charioce snatched the crown was similar to Napoleon's coronation. According to Legend, Napoleon snatched the crown from the Pope as he walked by and crowned himself Emperor in order to show his rejection of one ideology. This similarity could be in reference of Charioce's rejection of the gods and blindly following them. * Charioce and Nina make an appearance in every episode. * Despite the great cruelty and oppression he has caused for humans, demons and gods, Charioce XVII is revered as an innocent and good man, even by some of the heroes of Genesis. **The producers themselves insist he is a pure-hearted man, even long after Virgin Soul has ended. References Navigation Category:Characters Category:Male Category:Humans Category:Characters in Shingeki no Bahamut: Virgin Soul Category:Rulers